Mat McGraw

Meet the future Wine Guy! Mat McGraw is a very talented young man with wine knowledge way beyond his age and a strength of work ethic I have rarely encountered. He has been with us for ten years now and I have to confess that I have and will continue to shift a lot of responsibility onto shoulders as his ownership interest grows.

How old are you?  Over thirty. Over the hill, as they say.

How long have you been with The Grapevine Cottage? Over ten years.

What did you or do you do in the real world? I have worked at my family’s restaurant, McGraw’s Steak, Chop & Fish House, since we opened in 1999. As a teenager, I did all of the less glorified positions such as kitchen prep, busing tables, and washing dishes. Eventually, I became responsible for all the food purchasing and menu development, as well as cooking on the line. After or somewhere close to turning 21, I took over the alcohol purchasing and menu development including the wine list. (Note: McGraw’s wine list won a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence this year.)

When and how did your love of wine begin? Initially, when I took over the wine list at the restaurant, I really liked small-batch bourbons and craft beer. I had the misconception that marriage and a mortgage came before appreciation of wine. When preparing for my first wine dinner at the restaurant, I spent night after night reading, drinking, and cooking but mostly yelling out four-letter words. Pairing the wine with properly prepared food in a progressive sequence for 30 to 40 people in a timely manner is very, very stressful and exhausting. However, when successfully executed, the resulting feeling cannot be matched. I think it was that experience that ignited my interest in wine.

How would you classify your tastes in wine, Old World or New World? Both. Patricia likes New World, so I probably drink more of whatever she decides to pull a cork on without asking.

All of us have our favorites. What varietals or regions do you feel are your strongest areas of expertise? In terms of varietal preference, I am and always have been a big fan of Syrah.

What is your favorite food and wine pairing? Although absurdly simple, a ribeye, preferably bone-in, and a glass of [insert most red varietals here].

What is your current favorite bottle? Any of the Charles Smith’s many single vineyard Syrahs under his K Vintners label.

What was your most memorable bottle? A tie between Orin Swift’s The Prisoner 2005 and Owen Roe’s Ex Umbris Syrah 2009. (Because that’s what I said three or four years ago and I think that was the last time I could narrow it down to just two wines).

Your favorite guilty pleasure? I don’t know. I guess if I actually felt guilty, I probably would not want to tell all the people who read this.

Best and worst thing about working here? Best: The people. Our customers, our sales reps and all of the other Grapevine Cottage employees make it a great place to work.